Vicente Filisola

Vicente Filisola (1789-23 June 1850) was a general of Mexico during the Mexican War of Independence, the Texas Revolution, and the Mexican-American War.

Biography
Vicente Filisola was born in Ravello, Italy in 1789, and he moved to Spain when he was a child. He joined the Spanish Army in 1804 at the age of 14, and he fought in the Napoleonic Wars before being sent to New Mexico in 1811. Filisola supported Agustin de Iturbide when Agustin proclaimed himself emperor, and he became a Brigadier-General of the Mexican Army during the Mexican War of Independence. In 1823, Agustin de Iturbide sent him to Central America to ensure that it remained a part of Mexico, and he occupied Guatemala City after the formation of the United States of Central America before annexing El Salvador in 1823. However, the people rose up in El Salvador, and the people of Guatemala City paid for the transportation of the Mexican forces back to Mexico. In 1836, Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna made Filisola his second-in-command during the Texas Revolution, and his rear guard was held behind by poor weather and mud, preventing him from fighting in any major battles. Filisola ordered the withdrawal of the remaining 4,000 Mexican troops in Texas after the Battle of San Jacinto, with a captive Santa Anna sending a message to him to request his withdrawal. He commanded one of the three divisions of the Mexican Army during the Mexican-American War, and he died of cholera in Mexico City in 1850.